"…But…he was Heylin…" Omi muttered, his lip curling in confusion.
Kiya nervously ruffled her slender fingers through her hair, shaking the curls anxiously. She dug her front teeth slightly into her lip as she furrowed her forhead.
"Ah. Um…" She stuttered, feeling small sweat beads drip down her face. "Yes. He was." She admitted with a resentful look on her face.
"So, does this mean that you are Heylin?" Omi asked angrily as he clenched his tiny fists together.
"No!" Kiya shouted. "I was mistaken. I've changed. I'm not Heylin."
Kimiko shot the girl an angry look, her black slanted eyes looked over the girl and a disgusted expression grew across Kimikos face.
Kiya's head sunk down and a lost look consumed her eyes. Shit. Why did I tell them that? I'm so stupid…
"Young Monks!" A loud voice interrupted the tense moment. Master Fung shouted across the courtyard as he stood in the doorway. "Breakfeast has been prepared." He spoke casually and left to go back inside of the temple.
Clay and Kimiko left hastily, trotting away towards the smell of food. Yet Omi stayed for a moment longer and glared sharply at a dismal Kiya. Eventually he too left, leaving Kiya and Rai.
"I'm…not hungry." She muttered as she slumped away from the temple entrance. What is wrong with me? This was a stupid idea. I never should have accepted Master Fungs request. They hate me… stupid stupid stupid!
She sulked away across the grounds, dragging her heels behind her. She meandered around the corner and lightly climbed up the corner wall, her toes touching the tip of the wall before bounding up the white slate to the roof. She sat casually on the singles, as if it they had been made for her.
She leaned back and looked up at the bright horizon, where the sun was just barely peaking out over the dusty land. Kiya's hand crossed gently behind her neck and she fell back onto the blue roof, with a small sigh. The sun slowly began to rise and shone brightly over her body. She casually lifted up her small hand to hide the suns rays.
A shadow loomed over her, covering her in a sweet shade. Kiya squinted her eyes harshly at the figure.
"Hey." The voice said quietly. Raimundo looked down to her before shifting into a sitting position.
Kiya tried to ignore the teen, turning her body slightly away from him.
"I'm not mad at you." Raimundo said gently.
"Mad? No I don't expect you to be mad." Kiya replied sharply.
"Well… whatever you expect me to be, I'm not." Raimundo chuckled with a confused tone.
"Yes. You are. You're probably just like the rest of them!" Kiya remarked angrily. Her voice shot up and a frightened look drew across her face.
"…Like the rest of them?" Raimundo asked.
"You find out I was Heylin and instantly, nothing I say or do will ever be worth trusting. Every word will be a lie and every truth will be a ruse or a trap. The only thing you guys will ever expect from me is betrayel and hatred." She exploded, her voice resonating across the roof.
Raimundo just that for a moment and his muscles tensed. His jaw locked and his eyes squeezed shut.
Kiya flipped around, facing her body towards Raimundo. She raised her arm and slamed it down on the shingles, shattering a few. "You know I'm right!"
"No. You're wrong." He said quietly, peeling open his hazed over eyes. His arm shot out and grabbed Kiyas as she was preparing for another smash. His warm hands wrapped around her icy forearm and held it in place for a moment.
"What do you know?" She shouted, yanking her arm out of her grasp. There were small red blotches of warmth where Raimundo had touched her. A steep red color rushed across Kiya's cheeks.
A small silence briefly held across the pair. Raimundo swallowed parts of his pride and looked Kiya in her sharp eyes. "I was once on the Heylin side as well."
Kiya stared at the teen, his image reflecting through her eyes. "Don't kid around with me Raimundo." She said quietly, her voice cracking slightly.
"I'm not joking." Raimundo replied sternly. I wish I was though…
"You? But… you're a Xialon Dragon?" Kiya asked, almost holding her breath.
"Yeah… I am." Raimundo said, almost more to himself than to Kiya. He stuck his chin up to the sun and a quirky smile formed as he looked back. "But I was tempted. By the hatred, the darkness" He paused slightly. "The power."
Kiya almost smiled back at Raimundo who seemed slightly lost in his past.
"Why did you leave?" He asked her as he ran his tanned fingers through his brown hair. He was nervous and could feel his own heartbeat pounding through his forhead.
"What?" She asked, slightly shocked.
"I asked why you…left the Heylin side. You need to get your hearing checked." Raimundo chuckled.
Kiya smiled slightly and looked back to Raimundo. "Well… Can you keep a secret?" She said quietly with a sadistic whisper.
Raimundo nodded and Kiya closed her eyes tightly, trying to remember the memories which she had forced down.
"When I was little I was an orphan. I don't really remember my parents, nor do I particularly wish to. Master Vien took me in when I was young, seeing my Dragon potential or Panda instincts or whatever you call them."
"Tiger Instincts." Raimundo interrupted. Kiya nodded. Tiger seemed more ferocious, so it must be correct.
"Yeah. That stuff." Kiya continued. "Well one day I…lost control of my powers." She said ominously.
"I don't remember exactly what happened, but when I regained consciousness after losing my powers…Master Vien was dead." She looked down, but Kiya's eyes lacked any remorse. "I was lost and afraid. I'd visit towns and try to find help, but they would also…" A small tear dropped from Kiyas eyes. "I've killed…so many."
Raimundo just looked at her Kiya, at a loss of words. He was able to repent for his sins by trapping Wuya back in the box. While he was on the Heylin side he had never killed, nor had he any intention to. Yet she was the same, she hadn't meant to kill the people…
"You… lost control of your powers?" Raimundo asked, confused but not wanting to push Kiya.
She nodded her head. "My lightning power… it just went berserk. I… don't really want to talk about it."
Raimundo nodded and looked down at Kiya. She was slightly curled up, her knees pressed upwards towards her chest. Despite her turned body, she kept her face straight and was looking directly into the harsh sun. Raimundo smiled as he saw the relief on Kiyas face. The both looked up at each other and for a brief moment both thought the same thing: Maybe I'm not the only one.
However, over the light scene loomed a dark crow whose eyes stared at the pair across from it on the roof. Through the bleak, shadowed eyes of the crow a figure stood in a grand room with his hands locked tightly together. A scowl formed across the face of the figure and a small breeze picked up the long black hair. A large snarl emitted and the figure turned into a misshaped dragon, with a long snout that reared back, showing a pair of frightening fangs.